Banjo-Tooie

Game Summary

The bear and bird’s second outing available in full. Loads of rollicking fun to be had here and with the legendary Stop N Swap feature reinstated. The best use of a backpack in a game ever! This game requires the Xbox 360 hard drive or the 512MB Memory Unit for storage. There are no refunds for this item. For more information, see www.xbox.com/live/accounts.

Fans of Viva PiÃ±ata and its arrangement of melodies have something special to look forward to soon, as Sumthing Digital has announced the release of "Viva PiÃ±ata Original Soundtrack," to be released on July 28th.
From the press release: "The Viva PiÃ±ata Original Soundtrack features 25 original musical compositions by Grant Kirkhope who also composed music for games such as Banjo-Kazooie, Banjo-Tooie, Donkey Kong 64, GoldenEye 007, Perfect Dark and Grabbed by the Ghoulies. The score was orchestrated by Nic Raine and recorded with the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra."
In addition to a retail release by way of Sumthing Else Music Works, the album can be downloaded digitally through iTunes and Sumthing Digital. Read More

It's no surprise that Perfect Dark still has a huge following, or that Rare would even consider making it an XBLM release of it. To further compound the rumor, Destructoid claims they have received an image that gives weight to the release actually happening.
As stated earlier, it wouldn't be a big surprise because they've already released two of their big Nintendo 64 titles on XBLM (Banjo Kazooie and Banjo Tooie). If the rumor does turn out to be true, we expect that it will be given the 720p face lift and a wonderfully fluid framerate.
We also hope that in addition to play over XBox LIVE that they keep the split screen play as well. That way our addiction to N64 nostalgia will be complete. Read More

It appears that the power of the almighty Stop 'n' Swop won't be the only thing Xbox gamers will get to experience tomorrow when Banjo-Tooie hits the Marketplace.
No sir, Banjo is coming, but he's not coming alone: The eagerly-awaited Cyber Troopers Virtual On Oratorio Tangram will be meching its way to the grand ole Arcade, as will the newest Hasbro Family Game Night title, Sorry!
Normally, any one of... the first two would make a tremendous splash on its own. Together, and I guess with Sorry!, it just gets that much better. But wait, there's more...
An add-on known as "Speeder Lane" will be coming to Twisted Pixel's Arcade title The Maw, and will only cost 100 Billy Bucks. Sorry!, meanwhile, commands a more unsympathetic 800, while the big guns, Banjo and Virtual On, will each go for 1200 Billy Bucks apiece.
So, 360 gamers, which ones are you in for? Read More

Banjo-Tooie arrives on Xbox LIVE Arcade this Wednesday, and The Rare Witch Project has gotten the scoop on the eagerly-awaited Stop 'n' Swop feature, one which was originally planned to be implemented into the Nintendo 64 originals, but instead had to be axed due to a revision of the hardware that would have excluded some users.
The following video could be considered a spoiler-- TRWP certainly does, so proceed with caution.
Read More

Following their recent success in porting Banjo-Kazooie and its sequel, Banjo-Tooie, to Xbox LIVE Arcade, port house 4J Studios says they would "love" to bring more of Rare's Nintendo 64 classics to Microsoft's downloadable service.
"We'd love to keep working with MGS and Rare so I guess just keep your fingers crossed along with us," co-founder Paddy Burns told fansite MundoRare in a recent interview, adding that his "fingers were crossed" that more such offerings would come from the developer. CVG throws out Jet Force Gemini, Killer Instinct, and Perfect Dark as their short list of titles they would like to see available once more.
As regards Banjo-Tooie, Burns assures fans that the "original plan" has been followed as closely as possible in restoring the ambitious "Stop 'n Swop" feature. Read More

Spring has sprung, and now it's time for bears to come out of hibernation. And that includes Rare's own Bear of the Year, Banjo, and his birdie buddy Kazooie.
Which is why Rare has announced that the 4J Studios port of the Nintendo 64 game Banjo-Tooie will be arriving on Xbox LIVE Arcade in just tooie weeks-- I mean, two weeks, on Wednesday, April 29th. And it will be more than just a port, as they remind us that this version will feature "a super-charged frame rate and some fully-featured Stop 'N' Swoppery."
If that's not enough, they will also be bringing Gamerpics based on the title to Xbox LIVE for 80 Billy Bucks, and have set up a web page for the game to keep you occupied in the meantime. Read More

This is just speculation for the most part, but there is some evidence that suggests that Perfect Dark may be heading to XLBA in the future.
Rare unveiled their Banjo-Tooie theme today, and it didn't appear to be anything out of the ordinary. But wait. If you look closely at the latest games icons, you notice a woman's face that shares a remarkable resemblance to Joanna Dark from the N64 days. Subtle hint? Could be.
All we know for now is that Rare loves to put little teasers and jokes in their images. Will this amount to something? It's a definite possibility. We'll keep you posted if anything more concrete comes our way. The image above is a little blurry, but you can get a clearer version right here. Read More

Rare has revealed today that come April, the Banjo trilogy on Xbox 360 will be completed, as the Nintendo 64 classic Banjo-Tooie will be released to Xbox LIVE Arcade. And hopefully, that's no joke; they note the timing is apt, as Easter is the time to be hunting down multi-colored eggs.
In addition to bringing a "note-perfect" version of the game to the 360 in HD, 4J Studios has managed to include the originally-abandoned idea for the Stop 'n' Swop. Read More

The '90s were very good to Rare, as that is when they were effectively at their peak, creating such classics as Donkey Kong Country, Killer Instinct, Banjo-Kazooie, Goldeneye, and God help us all, even Battletoads. All said, it's little wonder that Rare's most ardent fans wish that the company could return to those days of glory... some way, somehow.
Well, Goldeneye is denied, but Banjo is on the comeback trail, thanks to a new Xbox 360 title and a re-release of the original games on Xbox Live Arcade. But might we see a return to his original stomping grounds, the Nintendo 64 portion of Wii's Virtual Console?"No immediate plans to put Kazooie or Tooie on Virtual Console, as you might expect now that they're both due out on Xbox Live Arcade." -- Scribes, at Rareware.netSuch is to be expected, perhaps.
However, a more positive light has been cast on another favorite Rare franchise in Killer Instinct, as an interesting interview reveals. Check it out after the cut. Read More

Banjo fans, Microsoft has good news for you today. The publisher will be releasing the Banjo-Kazooie "remake" for XBLA this November. The game is said to come with achievements and enhanced visuals.
Here are the full details:
Microsoft announced today that Banjo-Kazooie, remake of the original Nintendo 64 game, is to be released on the Xbox Live Arcade on November 26th, 2008. The game will be priced at 1200 MS points and will contain graphical enhancements, along with achievements and gamerscore support.
For those of you that cannot wait until the 26th of November, Microsoft is planning to give consumers that pre-order the latest entry in the Banjo-Kazooie series, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts, a free code to download the original title for free, two weeks before its release on the XBLA. -- Strategy Informer
Also, Microsoft said that it'll be re-releasing Banjo-Tooie on XBLA in early 2009. The publisher did not specify whether or not that too will be a remake.
Who's planning to buy this?
Read More

A seemingly popular topic in Rareware's Scribes letter column is Banjo-Threeie, which the loving chaps across the pond seem to be more than thrilled to discuss:
"With Banjo-Kazooie 3 coming out, though, I am hoping that there will be another platformer released by Rare, only with graphics and controls and things like that that make me mash my hands on the keyboard like this: fljskajkjf;riuiusaduhfiausdbfisdjnkcvnjdshdjjdk,ruwyh43!! So, will you be staying true to the platforming nature of the series or will Banjo be turning into an over-the-shoulder view shooter with lots of blood and gore?"
Click the jump for Rare's response, and TONS more. Read More